Author: My 15 Hour Work Week

I hate hypocrites. These people say one thing, but do another. No, I am not refering to the girlfriend that says “Anything’s fine for dinner” but gives you a frown when you suggest MacDonald’s, Ding Tai Fung or Sushi Tei. And I am also not talking about parents who spend their free time watching TV or playing mahjong but ask their children to study or read more story books. Ooops. I am actually pointing my fingers at those financial advisers/bloggers who always advocate budgeting or recording expenses but in actual fact, fail to do so. A few weeks ago, I wrote a post/guide detailing...

In case you have the misconception that I am one of those anti-PAP Singaporeans after reading my views on the proposed Medisave Life and PSLE changes, let me correct it with the next sentence. The government has to be commended for introducing the latest set of housing measures to provide Singaporeans with “More Help, Stronger Support and Better Homes”. After reading HDB’s press release today, I guess Foreign Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam was right in labelling the recent National Day Rally a “game-changer”. Enhancing HDB Grants for Singaporeans To be honest, even after PM Lee’s role as a housing agent...

For the past couple of weeks, some Asian currencies have been hit pretty badly and the Singapore dollar climbed to record highs against many of our neighbours’ currencies. Since I go to Johor Bahru pretty often, I took a leisurely walk to Change Alley during lunch time last Friday to check out the exchange rates. Unfortunately, most people thought the same way too and the place was super crowded. Singaporeans definitely know a bargain when they see one. Apparently, this bloodletting is due to big institutional funds withdrawing their funds from Asia. And obviously, the stock markets have not been spared. It was a sea...

POSB pride themselves as being neighbours first and bankers second. And it’s true. Because Singaporeans have always treated POSB better than even their real neighbours. Otherwise, why are all of us lending POSB our hard-earned cash for no interest at all?! (Sorry, but I am not willing to factor in that abysmal 0.05%) Furthermore, besides offering the lowest interests, their ATMs and bank branches are always packed with people. Yet most Singaporeans (including me) continue to have an account with them and queue patiently for the services. Luckily for us, POSB has finally decided to reciprocate our kindness and faith towards them. In these recent few months, this...

Last Sunday, PM Lee held his 10th National Day Rally and announced a slew of very promising social policy changes that were intended to transform Singapore into a “compassionate meritocracy”. Although Compassionate Singaporeans generally sound like an oxymoron to me, I remain optimistic towards many of these changes that attempt to level the playing field for children/young adults and also offer aid to some of our less well-off pioneers. And among these policy shifts, the two most talked about changes are the introduction of Medishield Life and the impending abolishment of the PSLE T-score. Medishield Life Healthcare expenses is something that the elderly will always be constantly worried about. You never...

When I first started work, its wasn’t really that difficult for me to save more than 70% of our income. After all, I was staying with my parents. There wasn’t utility bills, groceries or mortgages to contend with. In this aspect, I am not the odd one out in this country. Unlike our Western counterparts, most Singaporeans stay with their parents after they start work. Due to our society’s emphasis on filial piety, we are seen as filial children instead of parasites who live off Daddy and Mummy. Therefore, many of my friends are able to save a significant portion of their income just like us. Most couples view...

Even at Primary 1, I wasn’t an average performer, which was largely due to the motivation (fear probably more appropriate) my Mum gave me. She was a stay-at-home mum and spent plenty of time and effort to monitor my school work. We would do spelling from day till night until I got the entire list of words correct. Moreover, she had really high expectations of me. I would often get caned when I return home with a 98 mark for Math (the 2 marks lost are often due to Carelessness or if you know me by now, a tinge of Arrogance) My Mum believed that academic excellence would give her children...

It’s always necessary to carry some cash in the wallet, right? Besides paying the hawker for our food during lunch time, we also need cash to buy bread at the bakery or get the newspapers at the mama shop downstairs. Therefore, it’s literally impossible for one be fully invested in the stock market right down to his last cent, even if he makes use of financial leverage (but that’s another story for another day). But even if I can, I wouldn’t want to. As I have mentioned many times already, I am pretty risk-averse (I know I am starting to sound like a broken tape recorder). So yes, those stuff in...